Mamou - The Sequel

Ok - so what does it take to get a guy to exercise the option of going back to the same restaurant ...
Within a matter of days
With the same girl?

If I wanted to simply impress the girl - I would take her to another restaurant... right?

It makes more sense to the warrior hunter
And it would score more points with the dainty, pretty, cutie "prey"
Errrrr - I mean dainty, pretty, cutie "princess" ....

And yet, there I was
Barely a few days from having just been there
Back again at Mamou ...
For a sequel

Why?
It's the food
It's the people
It's the attention one gets
It's the whole dining experience
It's being "home" ...















It was a Monday - and the place was packed
Word-of-mouth is creating a beeline for this wonderful nook
We were extremely lucky that a corner table had just become available
Seated comfortably in our "dwarf" chairs, we marveled at our luck ...

A carafe of white wine started the evening.
This was followed by "Cracked Cheese with Honey and Fuet" (grana pagano cheese with side of honey and fuet catalunian salami) @ 295pesos.

Salami and cheese -with a honey dip ?
This is what is so much fun with Mamou - it is unpredictable
The culinary concoctions have a sense of simple genius that appeals to the child in me who has sometimes been lost in the complexity of my adult cuisine preferences.

Then came the "Steak" - a 400 gm US prime ribeye with sides of baked mashed potatoes and corn pudding @1680pesos.
It came in cut portions ready for sharing.

Let me just say it straight ...
This is the best steak dish I have had in a long while.
Simply salted and spiced , it drowns in its own juices and oil
With just the right amount of fat that creates its own flavor

As if they had detected the child in me (perhaps through the glow in my eyes and the urgency with which I attacked the steak),
I was offered a dip of mayonnaise.
Yeheyyyyyyyyyyy - mayonnaise ...
How whimsical can dining get?
Such a joy ...

Needless to say - the steak was wiped out

Lastly, we had an imaginative Batac Bolognese (spaghetti with Batac Ilocos sausage, fennel and stewed tomato sauce served al dente) @335pesos.
A fusion of Ilocos and Italiano ...
That which they call "Ilocano"

Tasty and playful - this simple interface of two cultures is at once familiar and comfortable.
I thought it could use more tomatoes and a tad more sauce but the dining experience was really becoming so much fun that I didn't mind anymore - I just savored its flavor and its appeal to my adventurous taste buds.

Now - thaaaaaaat was a meal.
That was dining.
That was good.
That was fun.


Oh oh oh - the girl I was with?
She was great too ....
What was her name?????




























Mamou - a home kitchen
Unit 1C-15
Ground Flr., Serendra
Fort Bonifacio, Taguig
(63-2) 8563569
0917-81MAMOU
mamou@info.com.ph

Home Kitchen

It was a wet, rainy evening .
We were in Serendra Piazza enjoying the cool if not moist breeze
We were walking slowly on purpose,
Looking through every window trying to decide where to have dinner ...
Something new caught my eye.
And we walked over ... just to see















What a pleasant surprise ...
Through the glass we could see our friends Oye and Malou Fores working feverishly behind the kitchen counter of what turned out to be their recent addition to the frenzy of restaurants in the area.


Mamou is a canteen-type mix of ikea-inspired cabinetry, dwarf Pampanga chairs, lightweight wood tables, warehouse lighting and an open galley kitchen. We were seated promptly by friendly staff. Oye and Chef Malou (that's "mamou" to her young niece) joined us for a while and a few stories were exchanged . We had friends at almost every table and the evening turned into some kind of a mini-reunion of long lost friends.

Mamou positions itself as a "home kitchen" (similar to sister-in-law Gaita Fores' famed comfort canteen - Cafe Bola).
The menu interpretation of "home kitchen" gives one a sense of world travel, old family, and heirloom recipes. It's like eating wonderful meals in the "family compound" , prepared with loving attention, using the recipes of my lola "sosing"...
Easy, interesting, likeable, somehow familiar, "eat"able ...



















Our sampling of their "dry run" menu started with - a tasty Palm Spring Rolls served with sweet chili sauce and garlicky vinaigrette @210pesos.

Then we had half of a citrus rubbed Roast Chicken, served with buttered onions, red rice, cinnamon plantains, and black beans @345pesos , and a Crispy Roast Duck with Red Chorizo Rice served with steamed vegetables and chili plum sauce @395pesos.


The dinner was light and tasty.
Comfort food.
Nothing grand.
Nothing pretentious.
Just a good home cooked dinner and a glass of wine
Enjoyed in the company of good friends ...

On a rainy day like today,
It can't get any better than this














































Mamou - a home kitchen
Unit 1-C , G/F, Serendra
Fort Bonifacio, Taguig
(63-2) 8563569
0917-81MAMOU
mamou@info.com.ph